OMG! Unexpected things/events during applications!

[RortyRorty]

Looking back, the whole app process can be a crazy stressful time for us, and often things happen that we dont expect. We laugh now, but oh how devestated we were. For me it was SoHo, my beloved external hard drive, breaking just hours before I needed to upload my portfolio. As I connected the usb cable the port on the hard drive fell into the case, im guessing cause it got too hot. I couldnt believe it!! All my work was on SoHo! I took it apart, screaming "why, why, why!" Once I noticed I couldnt fix it, I tore apart my apartment looking for a cable to fit the other port that still worked. Somehow, I found one in my closet. As I type this, the hard drive is still in pieces on my desk. Oh, the madness of grad apps!!

[hope4fall2012]

I think the closest I came to a disaster was when my advisor went on a week long trip the week that my first application was due. Luckily, he was very very considerate to fill out the recommendation letter while he was on his trip. I will always be grateful for that..

The other thing that happened was due to the DHL people. My packets to UC-Santa Cruz were sent to Pittsburgh and this was on the deadline. Gave me a sleepless night but it ended out OK in the end..

[contretemps]

My LOR writer was in the hospital the week before the application deadlines. Good thing he recovered fast.

[v834]

After I had submitted my online app and mailed in the supplemental materials I waited a few days and then called the program contact to see if my papers had arrived and to make sure nothing was missing or if it was that I would be notified. She very helpfully checked my application and pointed out one of my recommenders had not submitted a narrative recommendation. I can only see if they submitted, not what they submitted since I waved my rights. The recommender is not in academia and is not American so it doesn't surprise me that he only filled out the specific question section and didn't submit a narrative, but I was SO worried and emailed him the contact info to submit the narrative to. Luckily he is a very responsible individual and did so very quickly.

There's also my other two advisers who were late with my recs One was late by 2.5 weeks and the other by just under a month ! Good thing I built in extra time for just that reason!

[mhrni]

Got my portfolio printed the day it had to be dispatched. Right before I was going to leave the printing shop to get it binded, I noticed that none of the pages were aligned with each other (front/back). Freaked out and started crying. Print shop guys freaked out even more, fixed the mistake and printed it all out again, but the delay meant that I barely got to FedEx in time for the last dispatch to leave.

Portfolio arrived at the university just in time and application was listed as complete. A couple of weeks ago, right infront of my eyes, as I was checking my application status, the portfolio went from received to MISSING. I probably sent emails to all the addresses I could possibly find on the department page. Was changed back to received the next day, but that was one of the longest days of my life.

[sansao]

I sent one program the wrong sop (addressed to another school, with other faculty listed ). I tried to be very careful in the whole review process, and I can only figure that I saved over a file during a final edit, or something along those lines. Talk about a frantic, embarrassed, tragic email to the department. The person there was very understanding though, he let me email him the correct files, and while he said the submitted materials had to go into whatever file they made for me, he could control what actually went to the department during the review process. He then sent me a full PDF of everything (excluding lors, of course), that the department would get for admissions, so I could make sure I didn't screw up anything else. I'm still mortified about that.

[cokohlik]

For one program I applied to, my writing sample got lost in the mail ... twice. Even with delivery notification, tracking, and (the 2nd time around) confirmation by the Dept that the address I was using was correct! I had to send in a PDF copy. Doh.

[guttata]

Let's see....

One school never received my GRE scores from ETS despite me filling out the school code the day of the test. Coordinator was very helpful though and let me scan my copy to get my scores in. Eventually they let me know they got my actual official scores - in January, after I took the test in August.

I sent my transcript to another school in October but didn't submit my application until November. Because of this, they never matched up my materials and I didn't notice until the end of January that they still listed my transcript as missing!

A third school keeps sending me emails demanding a final transcript with degree shown before they will forward my application to the department. One problem: I'm a senior in college and don't HAVE a final transcript yet. No one in their admissions dept can quite figure this out, despite numerous phone calls.

The best one that's actually my fault, though, is waiting until 6:52 pm to submit my NSF GRF application for a 7pm deadline!

[orst11]

I have had my share of ups and downs with this whole process. I originally was going to apply last year, but was living abroad and everything bad seemed to happen. I had to have emergency dental surgery, I was in a hospital for over a week because I got this virus and was literally almost on my death bed, etc.

This year when I did apply I tried to be as organized as possible but it was somewhat chaotic at times. One of my former professors was doing field work, so it was almost impossible to reach him at almost all times. My computer got the most malicious computer virus I had ever seen and deleted all of my files a week after I submitted all my apps, so in a way I was lucky but somethings I didn't have secondary copies of so still kind of upset about this. Also, I have had a few problems with programs that have two part applications, where the program simply doesn't receive my app. even though it was sent 3 times.

[anonyouknow]

I had serious issues with Singpost and Canadapost this application round. I got tracking on all my packages, which made me neurotic in checking the status to begin with.

Usually packages I send from Singapore to the US take 6-7 days to arrive, including weekends, when I send them via registered mail. I was told they would arrive in 6-11 days when I sent them out to Canada. The first package took 14 days to arrive, the second and third packages, sent out the same time, each took three weeks to arrive. My second to last and last packages, after ONE MONTH were still showing them stuck in customs.

It turns out someone either in Singapore or Canada never updated my tracking (which I paid good extra money for!). The package was now sent two months ago and is still showing in customs, even though I've contacted the school and been assured my application was received and complete before the deadline. I'm just glad I sent everything in very early...

[bigtooth81]

My school email, included in my CV, was recently disabled. Although I still register with my gmail and use it to contact admission officers, I realize that CV is probably the only thing that professors have at hand. I just sent out notices to all departments to so that they can update the professors about my gmail address. I cannot believe such thing could happen but it does. Anyway, I have worked hard to prepare my application and must stop worrying about this thing. If I cannot get into a program due to this problem. This is because God doesn't want me to be in that department.

[MissH]

I had a few interviewers who kept on flaking out on me regarding their sending in my recs/had tech issues.

I had the worst time getting a few transcripts to schools.

[MaxiJaz]

One of the schools I applied to has a complicated, two-part application entry system, which seem to be mutually exclusive from the other and once every section on both forms are completed, a button should pop-up where I can finally submit the form. After completing each section carefully and diligently, I found that the button wasn't showing, and it happened to be the day of the deadline. I tried calling the school but didn't get a reply, sent numerous e-mails, even mailed them via post. I eventually gave up, and held onto the belief that they would have to accept it as I paid the fee (right?).

Turned out that the school was in the midst of a staff strike, which they conveniently told me a few days after the deadline, and would be updating the system later, where some smurf hadn't updated my records so that I could submit everything. Bah! So many sleepless nights.

[AlisN1dlan]

One of the three professors who had agreed to recommend me had a stroke before he could submit his letter. I had no way of knowing what had happened as I'm on extended enrollment finishing my thesis - not on campus. No answers to my emails. What a nightmare

[RortyRorty]

One of the three professors who had agreed to recommend me had a stroke before he could submit his letter. I had no way of knowing what had happened as I'm on extended enrollment finishing my thesis - not on campus. No answers to my emails. What a nightmare

That is terrible luck! Surely, the schools should be understandable of the circumstances.

My school email, included in my CV, was recently disabled. Although I still register with my gmail and use it to contact admission officers, I realize that CV is probably the only thing that professors have at hand. I just sent out notices to all departments to so that they can update the professors about my gmail address. I cannot believe such thing could happen but it does. Anyway, I have worked hard to prepare my application and must stop worrying about this thing. If I cannot get into a program due to this problem. This is because God doesn't want me to be in that department.

This is my biggest worry right now. Its been a year since I graduated and I know my school email will be disabled soon. I just hope I hear back before this happens.

[GreenePony]

Slightly off topic but a concern now: is it normal for schools to disable emails after you graduate? My husband graduated from our university 4 years ago and can still use his?

Edited February 15, 2012 by GreenePony

[RortyRorty]

Slightly off topic but a concern now: is it normal for schools to disable emails after you graduate? My husband graduated from our university 4 years ago and can still use his?

Different schools have different policies. I looked into mine and found out they disable it two years after graduation. You might check with your school to find out. Then maybe you can transfer or save any emails or files of importance.

[laviola]

One of the three professors who had agreed to recommend me had a stroke before he could submit his letter. I had no way of knowing what had happened as I'm on extended enrollment finishing my thesis - not on campus. No answers to my emails. What a nightmare

That's terrible. I hope he's ok.

It's stressful being in that type of situation. Just before one of my profs was gonna write mine, he got injured too... but thankfully submitted it in time, later on, so I'm really grateful.

That - the recommendation letters - was honestly my most stressful time in applying. I'm so bad at asking people to do things for me, so I just felt awkward.

[Semester Photon]

Different schools have different policies.  I looked into mine and found out they disable it two years after graduation.  You might check with your school to find out.  Then maybe you can transfer or save any emails or files of importance.

Wow, I just had a mini heart attack. My apps all have my student email on them. Just checked out my university, and their policy is "as long as you graduate from the university, you get to keep your student email for life." I guess they are on the generous side.

[axc]

The only thing that's happened to me aside from struggling to fund my trip is an interview invite in my spam folder.

I heard a recent story about: a friend getting tipsy at a grad interview weekend and spilling lab politics/lab dirt from their old labs, another friend’s car breaking down in the desert around noon on the way to UCLA and someone’s grandparent went to the ER after/during interviews and they had to take leave early.

[RKS]

Not as glamorous as others, but my printer ran out of ink when I needed to print my final copies of my letters of purpose/other supplemental info..I had a mini heart-attack at this point...I don't think I could have handled one of my recommendation referees getting sick/injured.

[PhDreams]

I just got, "Your request for a transcript has NOT been processed due to a financial hold." OMG!!!! It's the middle of the semester, people! So apparently, I have an application floating around somewhere that is incomplete because my school decided to send this email to me in a "timely" (sarcastic tone) fashion. This is NOT okay!!!!! >

So sad...

[wheatGrass]

During a meeting with a POI at school B, about 2 weeks after the app for School A was due, I found out that one of my main POIs at School A has completely changed her research focus... I mean completely, so that nothing I wrote in the SOP about our common interests was relevant at all. I had had a very positive email exchange with POI from school A, but she never bothered to tell me this? Aarg.

[DustSNK]

Transcripts lost in mail for WEEKS, professors in Europe on vacation... that was my first cycle. I went full cautious this cycle, hand delivered most of my apps to departments and overnight UPS to others.

[LaBrunaFurba]

One of my acceptance letters mistakenly said I'd been admitted to the MA program when it was supposed to be an acceptance to the PhD program.

This process is killing me dead.